Two Ontological Views of Japanese Americans Shaped by Experiences Living in Japan

• In Event: 303 - Regular Session. Asians and Asian Americans

Abstract

This paper asserts the existence of two ontological views of Japanese Americans (by people who identify as “Japanese American”) that are heightened through the experience of living in Japan. One view, primarily embraced by later (i.e., third, fourth) generation Japanese Americans, is that Japanese American culture and identity in the United States is ontologically distinct from Japanese culture and identity in Japan. A second view, primarily espoused by shin-nisei (the children of postwar Japanese immigrants), is that Japanese Americans are different from Japanese simply because they were raised in the United States, where they have internalized mainstream American values such as freedom and individuality. The only difference between them and their (literally) Japanese cousins is that their Japanese parents raised them in the United States. The ramifications of these different ontological views are that while both perspectives assert a “Japanese American” identity that is distinct from a “Japanese” identity in Japan, the first view locates the cultural center of Japaneseness for Japanese Americans in the United States, while the second view still sees Japan as the cultural center. Findings are based on over 60 interviews conducted with Japanese Americans living in Japan and the United States.

Author

• Jane H. Yamashiro, University of Southern California